Download the pursuit of an audience: analyzing strategies and procedures

THE PURSUIT OF AN AUDIENCE:
ANALYZING STRATEGIES AND PROCEDURES ASSOCIATED
WITH ARTS ORGANIZATIONS OFFERING DISCOUNTED
TICKETS
Presented In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements For
The Master of Science and Arts Administration Drexel University
By
Kristin N. Allard, B.A.
Drexel University
2012
Approved by
Roy Wilbur
Advisor
Graduate Program in
Arts Administration
i
ABSTRACT
Arts participation has experienced a significant decline since 2008. In
order to fill seats and encourage patron attendance, many performing arts
organizations have offered free and discounted tickets to their performances.
Some believe that discounting is an innovative way to expose their art to new
audiences and generate revenue. Others believe that discounting devalues the
artistic product and teaches patrons to wait for a discount before paying full price.
I analyzed both perspectives of this argument and examined cases of
successful and unsuccessful discounted efforts. To that end, the following analysis
aims to synthesize these findings on the topic of discount ticket offerings as it
applies to strategic execution, audience development, and organizational
sustainability.
Established with data collected through extensive research and interviews,
organizations that utilized a predetermined structure through which to offer
discounts reported a higher rate of success than those that did not. Without a set
strategy in which to offer discounts, results will be erratic and unable to predict,
which many organizations did not prefer.
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I’d like to thank everyone who assisted in the completion of my research.
For those who provided a year of moral support, I’d like to thank Katie
Carmichael, Nathan Shapiro, Emily Vernon, and my mom. I would also like to
thank Danielle Swan for responding to my numerous emails about thesis
guidelines and deadlines. I would not be graduating without her!
I wish I could individually thank every person that guided my thesis
research along the way, whether it was through a quick discussion or an email
response. I am especially grateful for the fourteen people that took time away
from their busy schedules to be part of my research and interview process. I
appreciate your time infinitely and hope this analysis will prove beneficial to your
organization’s future discounting endeavors.
Lastly, I must extend my deepest gratitude to my thesis advisor, Roy
Wilbur, who stuck by me throughout the past year while I worked on my thesis.
Roy always found time for me and without his help, I would still be deliberating
my thesis topic. I owe all of the success I’ve had with this thesis and degree to
him and will forever be grateful of his guidance.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
ABSTRACT.................................................................................................................... ii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ........................................................................................... iii
TABLE OF CONTENTS............................................................................................... iv
INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................................. 1
CHAPTER ONE- INTRODUCTION TO THE ORGANIZATIONS RESEARCHED ..... 8
CHAPTER TWO- THE HALF-PRICE PROGRAM ....................................................... 17
CHAPTER THREE- THE THEATRE COMPANIES’ USAGE OF THE HALF-PRICE
PROGRAM ....................................................................................................................... 22
CONCLUSION ................................................................................................................. 34
APPENDIX A ................................................................................................................... 37
WORKS CITED ............................................................................................................... 39
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INTRODUCTION
In the performing arts industry, only 50% of all single ticket buyers return
to an organization to see another performance (Arts 2007). According to an arts
participation study conducted by the National Endowment for the Arts, all
disciplines within the performing arts experienced a decline in audience
participation from 2002-2008. Those with the largest rate of decline were classical
music at 17%, ballet at 21%, jazz at 26%, and opera with a staggering 34%
decline in audience attendance (Williams and Keen 2009). Current economic
barriers are hindering the growth in audience attendance of many nonprofit
performing arts organizations, making sustainability a serious challenge. As a
result of these challenges, some companies are choosing to offer discounted
tickets to the community they serve as a means of both attracting new audiences
and filling empty seats—two fundamental goals that are imperative for any
company to achieve.
Current findings indicate that there are divided opinions in the artistic
community regarding the relationship between offering discounted tickets and
audience retention. Some companies that offer free tickets have documented
success with audience retention for example, Free Night of Theatre (FNOT)— a
program initiated by the Theatre Communications Group (TCG) to promote
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audience development in theatre communities throughout the nation. In 2007,
program-wide statistics indicated that out of those who attended, 44% returned to
a theatre that same season as a single ticket buyer and 4% as a subscriber (Shugoll
Research 2007). In their 2007 initiative, all 120 participating regions reached
their audience development goals by offering free theater tickets to the
community. The Shugoll report states that out of 3,058 respondents of a nationwide survey, 65% of participants attended a performance at a theatre company
they had never been to before. Also, 80% have gone to a theatre program within
the region since attending FNOT, 85% saying they attend the theatre more
because of their experience with the program. From the study, three strategies
were also identified to guarantee future audience retention: do not let walk ups
walk away; help new audiences feel like part of the family; and invite audiences
back immediately.
There are many examples of non-profit arts organizations offering
discounted tickets for their programs in order to develop relationships with new
audiences. The Signature Theatre Company in New York City has been offering
$25 subsidized tickets, through sponsorship with Time Warner, to all of their
productions since 2005 and has seen positive results with regards to changes in
audience demographics (Isherwood 2007). The Sledgehammer Theatre Company
in Chicago offers a season pass that allows audiences to pay a one-time fee of
$49.95 to attend as many performances as they want throughout the season.
Single tickets normally cost $25 per ticket. (Sledgehammer n.d.). The San
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Francisco Opera offers Opera-in-the-Ballpark every fall in AT&T Stadium, where
they present a free live simulcast of their season-opening production. The
organization’s Marketing Director, Marcia Lazer plans every aspect of this event
strategically to ensure each audience member is tracked and contacted following
the performance. In 2009, the company set an attendance record of 27,000
attendees for their annual simulcast (Wiegand 2009). Data showed that $880,000
in ticket revenue was generated the following season solely from those who
attended (Borzo 2010).
Since Groupon’s launch in 2008, many organizations have also been
taking advantage of daily deal sites, which offer daily discounts to various types
of local and national businesses through e-blasts and their websites. In less than
three years, Groupon has become the top-selling daily deal website in the world1
(Freed 2011). Groupon strives to connect businesses with new consumers through
discount opportunities- a strategy that many organizations are trying to take
advantage of. According to a recent study surveying 22,000 online shoppers using
such sites as Groupon, Living Social, and Google Offers, 31% of buyers are firsttime customers and 27% are infrequent (Freed 2011). Even such Broadway
productions as La Cage aux Folles offered Groupon deals in 2010, selling over
1,500 tickets (Cox 2011).
1
Groupon has experienced financial issues since the company went public in 2011. Shares were as
high as $31 in November 2011 yet recently dropped as low as $3.00 this past November (Pavlo
2012). Though the company’s third quarter has been referred to as a “colossal disaster,” Groupon
claimed to end with 39.5 million active subscribers (Korn 2012).
3
There are segments of new customers that organizations are able to engage
through strategic ticketing discounts. This includes patrons who are reluctant to
risk spending money for an event they assume may be uninteresting, as well as
those who are disinclined to attend the arts in general (Cameron 2005). Neither of
these situations should be a factor keeping potential audiences away. Offering free
and discounted tickets is a way to invite the “disinclined” patron. “If we truly seek
to engage the “unengageable,” it will be a long and difficult process from which
we may not see a short- or even midterm impact. But it is absolutely necessary”
(Lord 2009).
Another major analysis that identifies strategies for offering discounted
tickets with the intention of garnering audience retention is What, me discount?, a
piece commissioned by the Alliance of Audiences (Alliance for Audiences n.d.).
The study asserts that convincing a customer to attend an event is the first step in
gaining retention, but stresses the importance of developing a strategy to further
communicate and build relationships with each individual audience member. The
Alliance of Audiences explains that the goals driving administrators to develop
their audiences are all long-term, focusing on the future success of the
organization. These goals include, but are not limited to: financial stability
through ticket sales; programming excellence in support of the artistic mission;
community engagement that furthers the message of the organization; and wordof-mouth marketing, the single most valuable marketing tool within the
performing arts (Alliance for Audiences n.d.).
4
Arguments against discounting, however, suggest that though offering
discounted tickets may increase the size of your audience, participants do not give
as much value to items that they do not pay for (Anderson 2010). Marketers are
specifically wary of discounts because they feel that potential audiences will
expect discounts every time and delay their purchasing while waiting for
discounts (Alliance for Audiences n.d.). Free and discounted offers may also
signal that a performance is not popular or worse, it can devalue the artistic
product or the organization itself.
Another perception is that the majority of people who attend free
performances are those who would be attending regardless of the cost. Though
not specifically related to the performing arts, in “Free is a Magic Number,” Tim
Baker uses the example of free days or “pay what you can” programs at museums.
He also discusses a program in the United Kingdom, A Night Less Ordinary,
which demonstrates a similar premise to FNOT but indicates that only 8% of
participants were new to the theatre (Baker 2011). Though the rate of attendees
may increase, it’s suggested that the organization is simply giving a hand out to
those who are able to pay the original cost of the ticket
In Free: The Future of a Radical Price, Chris Anderson makes the point
that offering products for free can ultimately increase the size of your audience
enabling organizations to market to more people, as well as identify new
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audiences. Anderson acknowledges, however, the notion that people do not care
for things that they do not pay for (Anderson 2010). This issue is frequently seen
in the performing arts industry, specifically in regards to free, or complimentary,
tickets. FNOT also touched upon this being a huge issue, explaining that free
tickets typically result in the highest rate of no-shows at performances (Shugoll
Research 2007).
Both for-profit and non-profit organizations have access to numerous
outlets through which they can provide discounts for their offerings. Some choose
to use larger discounting companies that have access to a broad customer base.
Others create discount programs internally that are offered through the
organizations themselves. Whatever means of attracting customers through
discounts, organizations must think strategically about how to use these outlets. A
poorly designed campaign can do serious harm to a business’s profit margin
(Rajan 2012). Therefore it is imperative for artistic organizations to understand
the different programs available before deciding the best strategy for offering
discounts to their audiences.
As previously indicated, there are many opposing opinions on the concept
of offering discounted tickets for arts and culture events. To that end, the
following analysis aims to synthesize these findings on the topic of discount ticket
offerings as it applies to strategic execution, audience development, and
organizational sustainability. Results from this analysis were taken directly from
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research gathered by interviewing organizations implementing half-price ticket
programs throughout the east coast. This analysis hopes to provide strategies and
principles in which to offer half-price tickets in order to seek new audiences,
maintain relationships with current patrons, and eventually track audience
retention.
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CHAPTER ONE- INTRODUCTION TO THE ORGANIZATIONS
RESEARCHED
In preparation for this analysis, I collected data from three cultural
alliances based in cities on the east coast, each organization offering similar halfprice ticketing programs for their members. The organizations studied include the
Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance (GPCA), ArtsBoston, and the Cultural
Alliance of Greater Washington (CAGW). Interviews were conducted with the
program coordinators at each cultural alliance to gain a greater understanding of
their specific ticket program, the make-up of their members, and the various
benefits that they offer. Three member organizations from each cultural alliance
were then selected to further explore each half-price program and how it was
being utilized. To ensure consistency, this research focused specifically on theatre
companies, representing a wide range of organizational capacity, audience base,
and discount usage.
Philadelphia
GPCA, founded in 1972, “is the region's premier leadership, advocacy,
and audience development organization for arts and culture” (Greater
Philadelphia Cultural Alliance 2004-2012). A membership-based service
organization, GPCA serves over 400 arts and culture organizations, and strives to
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“connect cultural resources to community needs; provide direct services for
nonprofit cultural organizations; produce direct marketing programs for cultural
consumers and lead cultural research, advocacy and policy work (Greater
Philadelphia Cultural Alliance 2011).”
Funsavers, is provided by GPCA as the main outlet through which its
members provide ticket discounts. Funsavers is a weekly e-mail that provides
week-of, half-price ticket discounts to members of the Philadelphia community.
This initiative began over 10 years ago in order to increase arts and culture
participation throughout the region. Those who receive these emails must sign-up
to be on the distribution list; but as of October 2011, over 100,000 people have
received the weekly e-blast (Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance 2011).
Organizations that are members of GPCA can offer discounts through this
program for any event, free of charge. All half-price offerings tickets are assigned
a promotional code and tickets are sold through the individual organization’s box
office.
The three participating theatre companies interviewed from the
Philadelphia region were Flashpoint Theatre Company, Bristol Riverside Theatre,
and Walnut Street Theatre. Flashpoint is a relatively new member of
Philadelphia’s theatre scene. Started in 2003, it focuses on new and contemporary
works that promote cultural arts awareness (Flashpoint Theatre Company 2010).
They have produced 12 Philadelphia premieres and one world premiere
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throughout its history, along with other works. Flashpoint is housed in the
Adrienne theatre’s second stage which is an intimate 55-seat space.
Currently celebrating its 25th season, Bristol Riverside is a professional
regional theatre located north of Philadelphia in the city of Bristol (Bristol
Riverside Theatre n.d.) in a renovated movie house that has a 300-seat capacity.
Devoted to presenting original, contemporary, and classic works each year,
Bristol Riverside’s current season includes five main stage productions.
As the oldest Theatre in America, the Walnut Street Theatre recently
celebrated its 200th anniversary in 2009 (Walnut Street Theatre 2009-2012). A
National Historic Landmark located in the Center City district of downtown
Philadelphia, it also celebrates having the largest subscription audience in the
world totaling 56,000 subscribers. Between the main stage and black box theatre,
the theatre presents over 20 productions each season, holds 600 performances,
and currently has two productions on tour.
Boston
ArtsBoston has been dedicated to connecting the Boston community and
visitors with local arts organizations for over 35 years. Serving over 170 arts and
culture organizations, ArtsBoston strives to help its members “grow audiences,
provide strategic and capacity-building resources, and serve as a collective voice
for the arts (Boston 2012).” With a mission dedicated to audience awareness and
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development, ArtsBoston has offered half-price tickets to its community since the
organization’s inception.
Inspired by New York City’s TKTS booth, ArtsBoston initially created
BosTix—a half-price, day-of-show ticket program that has two booths for inperson sales only. BosTix booths are located in Faneuil Hall Marketplace (on the
Freedom Trail) and Copley Square, both convenient, popular areas of downtown
Boston. ArtsBoston then created a second half-price outlet that offers advanced
ticket purchase opportunities online. BosTix also has an email blast that informs
patrons of half-price discounts on a weekly basis. All half-price ticket sales are
processed through the BosTix website or booth. Sales are reconciled following the
conclusion of the events being offered.
Research on the organization’s end of the BosTix process was collected
from Wheelock Family Theatre, American Repertory Theater, and Huntington
Theatre Company. Since 1981, Wheelock Family Theatre has been serving
children and their families by offering an entertaining and affordable theatrical
experience for audiences of all ages (Wheelock Family Theatre 2011). In
association with Wheelock College, the theatre has produced 80 main stage
productions over the past 32 seasons. Wheelock is the fourth largest theatre
company in Boston and is the premier family theatre in the area.
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American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.) is associated with Harvard
University and has been ranked by Time magazine as one of the top regional
theatres in the country (American Repertory Theater 2012). The artistic staff of
the theater is highly involved with the university, teaching both undergrad and
graduate-level classes throughout the school year. In its 32 year history, the
company has focused on reinventing classic and contemporary works while also
pushing boundaries with original works and premieres. A.R.T. is the recipient of
numerous awards including the Tony Award and the Pulitzer Prize.
Through a partnership with Boston University, Huntington Theatre
Company aims to offer a range of productions from classical to original work
while maintaining its dedication to professionally train up and coming artists
(Huntington Theatre Company 2012). The company is producing eight shows this
season, utilizing the 890-seat Boston University Theater as well as the Stanford
Calderwood Pavilion at the Boston Center for the Arts
Washington, D.C.
The Cultural Alliance of Greater Washington, D.C. (CAGW) “convenes,
supports, advocates and promotes arts and culture in the Metropolitan
Washington, D.C. region (Cultural Alliance of Greater Washington n.d.).
Organizational memberships are available to all arts and culture entities in the
region that maintain 501(c)3 status. CAGW offers marketing services,
professional development, and networking opportunities.
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The alliance offers two outlets in which members can promote their
upcoming programming. Culture Capital is a website that is viewed 40,000 times
per month and offers information on a variety of entertainment and cultural
experiences in the area (Culture Capitol 2012). CAGW also offers the use of
TICKETPLACE—an online and in-person half-price ticket program in which
members can sell their tickets at a discount. TICKETPLACE also sends an email
blast four times a week to all subscribing patrons, enabling member organizations
to reach a wide variety of patrons throughout the region (TICKETPLACE 2011).
Though tickets can be purchased through the website, TICKETPLACE also has a
retail outlet located in northwest Washington, D.C. A certain number of tickets
are allotted from the participating organizations and given to TICKETPLACE to
sell. Similar to BOSTIX, Box Office sales are reconciled after the event.
The three theatre companies interviewed from Washington, D.C. that use
TICKETPLACE were the Keegan Theatre, Folger Shakespeare Theatre, and
Arena Stage. The Keegan Theatre is an intimate company located in Arlington,
Virginia that focuses on both Irish and American contemporary theatre. Keegan
produces work for its local audience but has also been taking classic American
plays on tour to Ireland each fall since 1999 (Keegan Theatre 2012). The 2012-13
season includes a wide range of seven plays and musicals from All My Sons by
Arthur Miller to Terrance McNally and David Yazbeck’s The Full Monty.
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The Folger Theatre is part of the Folger Shakespeare Library, a research
center devoted to the works of Shakespeare and the early modern west located on
Capitol Hill (Folger Shakespeare Library n.d.). The library has a museum whose
exhibits rotate three times a year, and also offers many public programs including
the theatre company, consort series, Penn/Faulkner literary series and educational
services. Focusing on Shakespeare and other Classical works, the Folger Theatre
has been producing a three-play season since 1992 and in 2012 added a fourth
play to their season. Performances take place in the Folger’s Elizabethan Theatre
which “evokes the courtyard of an English Renaissance inn” (Folger Shakespeare
Library n.d.).
Just settling in from a recent move to the Mead Center for the Arts, Arena
Stage is thriving as the “largest theater in the country dedicated to American
Voices (Arena Stage 2012).” Since 1950, Arena Stage has been dedicated to
presenting classics, contemporary, and new theatrical works as one of the first
non-profit arts organizations in the United States. The company serves over
300,000 audience members each year in one of its three theatres: The Fichandler
Stage which is a four sided auditorium that seats 683; the Kreeger Theatre which
seats 514; and the Kogod Cradle, a more intimate space that seats 200. Arena
Stage has had 17 productions that have gone on to Broadway, including 33
Variations, The Great White Hope, A History of the American Film, and Next to
Normal.
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METHODS
Data for this analysis was collected directly from staff members of each
alliance and the theatre companies that are members of those alliances. Since this
analysis focuses on ticket sales, the main point of contact was the primary
organizer of ticket sales and/or marketing decisions. In-person and telephone
interviews were conducted with each company. The contact from each alliance
was asked the same questions, and a different set were asked of the theatre
companies, to maintain consistency throughout the data collection process. The
interviews focused on: the purposes behind offering ticket discounts, the
timeframe in which discounts are offered, and the frequency in which discounts
are used.
Throughout the course of this research, all participating organizations and
their staff were completely informed of the study’s intentions and research
methodology. All pertinent information collected during the process has been
used unless otherwise requested that it not be by the participating organization.
Certain information collected was not relevant for the topic of half-price ticketing
and was therefore excluded. This will be noted throughout the analysis, depending
on its relevance to the overall findings.
As previously stated, there are many positive and negative perceptions
regarding ticket discounts and whether they can lead to audience retention. This
paper’s analysis will attempt to reveal the factors that impact this relationship in
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understand its effect on the future of audience development and retention, as well
as organizational sustainability. Throughout the course of this analysis, more
examples of strategic ticketing discounts are introduced. The findings collected
from those interviewed will presumably localize the most effective practices and
ideas that arts organizations should consider in determining the most practical
ways to offer discounted tickets.
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CHAPTER TWO- THE HALF-PRICE PROGRAM
The following chapter will discuss similarities and differences found
between the half-price programs at the cultural alliances. It will analyze positive
and negative aspects of each program and offer additional commentary regarding
each topic. This examination will be pertinent for understanding the discounting
and audience retention strategies used by the theatre companies researched which
is fully addressed in Chapter 2.
The initial similarity found between GPCA, ArtsBoston, and CAGW is
that each developed a discount ticketing program inspired by New York City’s
TKTS booth—a discount ticketing program formed by the Theatre Development
Fund (TDF) in 1973 (Theatre Development Fund 2012). Each cultural alliance
manages a similar half-price ticketing program with the intention of exposing new
audiences to their area’s arts and culture organizations. Through the use of walkup booths, online ticketing services, and email promotion, the alliances sell
discounted tickets to select performances throughout the year. Though created at
different times, it is likely that the alliances were inspired by TDF’s mission to
“enable diverse audiences to attend live theatre and dance in all their venues”
since that is what each strives to do through their own discounting program
(Theatre Development Fund 2012).
17
ArtsBoston and TICKETPLACE employ half-price ticket booths as well
as advanced sales online. Falk explained that at ArtsBoston’s booths, patrons can
only purchase tickets for performances occurring that day. Their booths are
visited mostly by tourists and walk-by traffic. Day-of ticket sales are sold through
BosTix and advanced sales are sold through ArtsBoston. Cuppo explained
TICKETPLACE’s booths sell day-of and advanced sales.
All three programs market heavily to their half-price buyers through
email. E-blasts are sent each week in order to advertise new shows that are
available for purchase. TICKETPLACE reaches over 8,000 people four times a
week through their e-club while ArtsBoston reaches around 50,000.
TICKETPLACE and ArtsBoston both have their own websites in which patrons
can purchase half-price tickets for performances in advance. Falk also noted that
ArtsBoston uses social media regularly to spread the word about performances.
While Funsavers follows a half-price focus similar to ArtsBoston and
TICKETPLACE, its discounting structure has a very unique approach. Funsavers
is strictly a “permission-based email that provides consumers with last minute
offers of half-price tickets to entertainment events for the upcoming week”
(Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance 2012). According to Gafgen, the
Funsavers e-club reaches over 100,000 members of the greater Philadelphia
community each week. Unlike BosTix and TICKETPLACE, Funsavers does not
manage ticket sales for arts and culture organizations. In an email sent every
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Thursday, each participating organization will supply a promotional code for the
specific performance being offered. Patrons interested in buying tickets must
contact the organization’s box office directly or purchase through the venue’s
website with the promotional code to receive the half-price discounts. Though a
much more simplistic system, Funsavers half-price program is an excellent way
for organizations to offer discounts without exchanging inventory or needing to
reconcile financial revenue.
Some arts and culture organizations offer tickets to all performances
throughout a given season while others choose specific performances based on
seating availability. Regardless of which performances are being offered, the halfprice model remains consistent for each cultural alliance, providing an easily
maintained system for member companies to use. Charles Baldwin of Wheelock
and Annie Immediata of the Folger Theatre suggest that many patrons adapt
quickly to the consistency of an organization’s discounting program. This can be
a positive aspect of half-price programs that patrons know how and when to buy
tickets. It can also pose a negative result for organizations that always offer halfprice tickets as certain patrons learn to wait for the discounts. Many of the
organizations interviewed including Wheelock and Huntington Theatre Company
claimed that the benefit of purchasing full-price in advance as a subscriber or
single ticket buyer is they can choose their desired day, time, and seats—a luxury
that is not necessarily available with half-price tickets
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One of the major benefits of the half-price program is that all three
cultural alliances provide the service to members free of charge (aside from
annual dues). Funsavers and TICKETPLACE offer their half-price programs to
non-members but charge a small fee to do so. ArtsBoston only offers half-price
tickets to members though Falk mentioned that non-members are allowed to post
events on the website’s performance calendar.
Another benefit is that all ticketing revenue generated by ArtsBoston and
TICKETPLACE is given back to the companies. There is a small service fee
added to tickets purchased through these outlets charged by the alliance in order
to support the booth and online ticketing website. Daily deals such as Groupon
and Living Social require a percentage of revenue generated (Groupon, Inc.
2011). Receiving the entire 50% from the half-price programs gives organizations
more revenue when their discounting which offers greater sustainability for the
future.
All three cultural alliances offer exclusive benefits through their half-price
programs that are more accessible and profitable for their members. Each program
provides flexibility for their members when determining how many tickets to sell,
which performances to offer, and where to seat their half-price patrons.
Philadelphia members have the benefit of gaining access to their Funsavers ticket
buyers since they are doing processing sales in-house. This also provides the
opportunity for patrons to be marketed to for future performances and to track
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their performance history. One of the biggest issues that Washington, D.C. and
Boston-based organizations had with their alliance’s program was the ability to
gain access to these patrons’ contact information in order to track their buying
activity. This topic will be addressed further in Chapter Three.
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CHAPTER THREE- THE THEATRE COMPANIES’ USAGE OF THE HALFPRICE PROGRAM
After analyzing the programs offered by the cultural alliances in each city,
it was essential to learn how their constituents were utilizing their organization’s
services. Though the primary focus of the research initially centered on audience
development and retention, as well as on future sustainability of the organization,
it quickly became apparent that there are many factors that influence these
outcomes. The questions asked in each interview represented significant
influences in determining how and when to offer half-price tickets and how to
further a relationship with the patron after they’ve engaged with the organization.
For the following chapter, the most efficient way to break down all the
information gathered is to review each question and analyze how the theatre
companies handled each aspect of discounting. An interview was also conducted
with Stephen Roth, the Executive Director of The Pricing Institute to provide
significant insight into the topics being discussed. The Pricing Institute helps
organizations focus on increasing ticket revenue by optimizing attendance.
What are the organization’s goals when offering half-price tickets?
This question offered the most variety when interviewing each theatre
company. Some organizations have one purpose when offering discounts while
others seemed to fall into multiple categories, using the half-price program to
22
satisfy various purposes. The most popular categories organizations fall into are:
offering tickets for performance dates and times where there is less demand;
utilizing the program for marketing purposes; and using the half-price program to
maintain a mission of affordability.
The most common reason organizations tend to use the half-price
programs is the need to fill the house. Flashpoint, Bristol Riverside, Keegan, and
the Folger all tend to gravitate towards offering half-price tickets solely when a
particular show or performance date is not selling well. Depending on the halfprice programs, organizations will offer tickets when they feel it is necessary to
give sales a boost. For ArtsBoston and TICKETPLACE, companies have the
ability to decrease half-price availability if full-price ticket sales begin to increase.
Since Funsavers promotions are offered the week-of, these discounts are always
available on a last-minute basis.
Walnut Street and ART utilize the half-price program for the same
reasons, yet do so more sporadically. Both of these organizations have internal
discounts for every performance already in place; Walnut Street has a limited
number of $10 tickets available for each performance and ART offers a similar
program for $25 tickets. Offering too many half-price tickets on top of the
discounted tickets offered for each performance could confuse patrons and
devalue the experience. When these organizations decide to use the half-price
program it has to be for a very specific performance. Ralph Weeks, the marketing
23
director for Walnut Street, explained that they will only offer discounts for
performances that fall close to holidays such as New Year’s Eve or July 5. When
patrons see the performance listed on Funsavers for that given day, they will think
that the discount is only being given because it is New Year’s Eve or the day after
Independence Day, not because the production is not selling well. Jared Fine from
ART uses ArtsBoston’s program similarly for less popular performance times
such as those on a Sunday or Monday evening or a Wednesday Matinee.
These theatre companies also use the half-price program for marketing
purposes. Fine explains that by offering half-price tickets through ArtsBoston for
less popular performances, they are able to promote the less popular show time to
new audiences. Walnut Street is also utilizing Funsavers as a means of marketing
to a broader audience, but they are doing so through banner advertisements in the
weekly emails sent to GPCA’s email club. Charles Baldwin said that Wheelock
Theatre Company is part of ArtsBoston Jr, a similar program for events geared
towards children and families which enables them to market their performances to
a specific segment.
Some of the theatre companies interviewed offer half-price tickets for
every performance to maintain their mission of affordability. Huntington Theatre
Company marketing staff Temple Gill and Meredith Mastroianni explained that
they do not want cost of tickets to keep a patron away. With an 890 seat house, it
is difficult to sell all tickets to a performance so the organization offers advance
24
and day-of tickets through ArtsBoston. Tickets go on sale in August for the entire
year, but selling only two weeks’ of performances instead of an entire run. As the
season continues, they can adjust the number of half-price tickets through
ArtsBoston based on availability in the house.
Wheelock offers half-price tickets to every performance. They want to
make their art available to everyone in the Boston community regardless of cost.
The half-price program allows them to offer tickets at an affordable price without
dropping the cost of all full-price tickets and devaluing the artistic product.
ArtsBoston allows them to have a discount program similar to ART’s $25 tickets
and Walnut Street’s $10 program.
What type of tickets are offered through the half-price program?
All organizations offer single tickets to their regular season productions
through their cultural alliance’s half-price program. Bristol Riverside and
Wheelock were the only organizations that offer tickets for special events,
whether it is a rental or collaboration with another company. Funsavers offers a
one-time half-price subscription purchasing opportunity at the beginning of each
season for its members to utilize. Half-price subscriptions have been offered for
the past few years with great success. Flashpoint used to take advantage of this
opportunity, but have since developed a discount package called “FlashPasses”
that serve as a subscription but is not available through Funsavers. Bristol
Riverside Theatre and Walnut Street both take advantage of the half-price
25
subscription offering. Weeks explains Walnut already has discounted packages
available so offering the subscriptions through Funsavers allows them to increase
visibility.
Do you take any precautions as to not upset full-price single ticket and
subscription buyers?
In regards to the question of taking precautions in order to not upset
patrons who are purchasing full-price tickets, the results were mixed. Some
organizations claimed they don’t feel the need to take precautions. Bristol
Riverside Theatre’s Audience Coordinator Rayna Williams explained that the
Box Office has received calls from upset patrons in the past. They will have
received the email from Funsavers and discover the performance for which they
already have tickets was being discounted. If patrons have purchased tickets in
advanced, the box office cannot refund due the organization’s ticketing policy. If
it was a same day purchase, the box office will make an exception and refund the
difference.
ART makes its $25 tickets available to all patrons and most are aware of
this before buying tickets at full-price. ART also tends to only offer half-price
tickets to performances that are already less expensive and may not be a popular
time or day of the week. Flashpoint only offers 20 tickets through Funsavers each
week to make more tickets available to subscribers and single ticket patrons.
26
Others believe they are taking precautions through the benefits their patrons
receive by being subscribers and single ticket buyers. For example, Huntington
Theatre Company, Walnut Street, and Arena all explained that by subscribing,
patrons are able to decide the specific dates they want to attend and always get the
best seats. All three of these companies utilize dynamic pricing, raising the price
of tickets based on selling patterns and popularity. Subscribers that purchase in
advance are typically getting a subscriber discount on the initial singleticket price
before it is raised. Due to production popularity, some theatre companies may
only offer half-price tickets in advance or for the first few weeks of a run. There is
no guarantee that tickets will be available when patrons want them. Some
organizations claimed they did not take precautions. However, offering subscriber
benefits or only offering half-price tickets to specific performances that aren’t
selling well is a form of taking a precaution that they may not have realized they
were taking.
Are you implementing any methods of tracking audience retention?
One of the most important topics addressed in the interview is specific
methods theatre companies are using to track audience retention. When providing
tickets at a discounted rate, it can be beneficial to know if patrons are first-time
buyers, returning half-price buyers, or prior half-price buyers that are converting
into full-price single ticket or subscription buyers. At this time, most of the theatre
companies are not tracking this information. Wheelock explained they are not
receiving the patron information from ArtsBoston which is why they are not
27
tracking patron buying behavior. Walnut Street issues so few half-price
subscriptions and single tickets that it is not worth the time and effort to track
these patrons. Bristol Riverside Theatre used to track their patrons buying history
but realized that so many patrons continued to buy through Funsavers that they
didn’t feel the need to track these patrons if they weren’t going to convert.
Some companies are dedicated to tracking their patrons and soliciting
them for future ticket purchases. Though organizations that sell through
ArtsBoston and BosTix do not receive the patron’s contact information,
Hungtinton Theatre Company attempts to collect the data from the patrons
directly. Gill and Mastroianni explained that each patron who purchases through
the cultural alliance’s program has a note on their seat when they arrive,
welcoming them to the performance. Within the welcome package, there is an
option for patrons to return a form with their contact information so they can be
contacted regarding future opportunities. To encourage patrons to fill out the
form, the company offers a piece of candy as an incentive. They did, however,
stop sending acquisition letters to half-price ticket buyers as they learned it wasn’t
translating into single ticket or subscription sales. The organization is pleased
with the revenue generated from patrons purchasing through ArtsBoston and
BosTix. During the 2011-12 season, Huntington Theatre Company made $43,000
in ArtsBoston advanced sales and $27,000 with BosTix day of sales.
28
Other discount ticketing programs being used:
At the beginning of this analysis, various discounting strategies being used
by performing arts organizations were discussed. When interviewing each theatre
company, it was important to learn other external discounting programs and
strategies they were using to reach their audiences in order to gauge best
practices. Though many of the theatre companies used outside programs, most
preferred to use the cultural alliance’s program.
A few of the theatre companies have experience working with daily deal
sites such as Groupon, Travel Zoo, and Living Social. Fine of ART, however,
feels they are not financially valuable since they take such a high percentage of
revenue as does Gill and Mastroianni of Huntington. Ralph Weeks of Walnut
Street agreed that the daily deal sites are not the best discounting option for their
company because it makes the show seem like a one-time event instead of on
opportunity to build a relationship with a local organization. The cultural alliance
program reaches a local market and, most importantly, people interested in the
arts.
Almost every organization interviewed has used Goldstar to sell half-price
tickets. Goldstar is an online ticketing website that aims to expose entertainmentbased organizations to new audiences and fill unsold seats by selling inventory
50% off (Goldstar 2012). ART and Wheelock both report positive experiences
with Goldstar. Baldwin explained that for some reason they have better success
29
selling evening performances through Goldstar than they do through ArtsBoston
or Bostix. Fine has also had success with Goldstar but claimed it felt like a fire
sale. One primary issue reported by users was they do not receive patron
information from Goldstar so this can make it challenging to market these buyers
in the future.
Arena Stage, on the other hand, has had such success selling through
Goldstar that they actually stopped using TICKETPLACE a few years ago and
sell all discounted tickets through this program. Chad Bauman, Associate
Executive Director at Arena Stage explained that their main reason for
discounting was to encourage advanced ticket buying and provide access to
certain demographics. While many organizations tend to sell their full-price
tickets first and then offer discounts if needed, Arena Stage puts discounts on sale
through Goldstar three to four months in advance and then either sells out of those
tickets or takes them off sale. Through this strategy, Arena Stage taught their
audiences that if they want the discount, they have to purchase in advance.
Most theatre companies agreed, however, that offering tickets through
their alliances’ programs was the best option. Not only are these companies
guaranteed the full 50% in revenue, but many claimed that they are reaching the
best suited market of local arts participators through this outlet. Wheelock, among
other companies, preferred working with the cultural alliance because of the
personable nature and relationship associated with the program.
30
Pros and Cons to using the half-price program:
Throughout the course of this analysis, many pros and cons came to light
in regards to discounting through the cultural alliance’s program. As Ralph Weeks
of Walnut Street explained, using Funsavers does sell tickets for their company
which is a definite bonus. Gill and Mastroianni from Huntington pointed out that
selling advanced and day-of sales through ArtsBoston makes a significant amount
of money throughout a season.
Even ART’s Fine who doesn’t use ArtsBoston’s services as frequently
finds the service provided by the alliance as a significant resource for his
company. He reveals the organization is solely dedicated to the promotion of the
arts without trying to capitalize on it, which reigns true to all three alliances since
none collect money from their member organizations for their discount services.
Fine would rather use ArtsBoston than any other discounting program because of
the way they take care of their members and maintain the mission of the program.
For a theatre company like the Folger Theatre, which is a branch of the
renowned Shakespeare research center and museum, promoting through
TICKETPLACE exposes new patrons to all aspects of the organization.
Audiences may be inspired to come back and visit the latest exhibit at the
museum or buy tickets to one of the consort performances. Immediata adds that
TICKETPLACE is a really valuable organization to all Washington, D.C. area
theatres and a great way for them to reach new patrons. Steven Roth of the Pricing
31
Institute explained that at what a patron believes to be an appropriate price,
organizations can gain constituents that may not have otherwise purchased a
ticket.
Noah Herman from Flashpoint also notes that working with Funsavers
gives the organization many opportunities to advertise to diverse segments and
potentially convert these half-price patrons into full-price single ticket buyers and
subscribers. Herman also reported, however, that conversions into full-price
buying habits rarely happen. “Instead, Patrons who buy discounted tickets through
Funsavers tend to wait for more discounts to be offered in the future as opposed to
buying full-price tickets or subscribing. This lack of advanced sale forces our
hand into advertising on Funsavers more frequently than we would like, which is
bad for full-price ticket income and, ultimately, bad for our earned income as a
whole.” This issue leads into the negative features of using the half-price
programs.
Transitioning back to Arena Stage’s recent switch to Goldstar— it was
enlightening to learn about the reasons the organization stopped using
TICKETPLACE’s services. Bauman felt that TICKETPLACE is a great outlet for
small to midsize companies, but it cannot handle the capacity of a large
organization. For Arena Stage, TICKETPLACE did not have the ability to reach
the number of people that they needed to, while Goldstar does, as they work with
over 4,000 venues nationwide (Goldstar 2012). After selling most of their half-
32
price inventory with Goldstar and only a small portion through TICKETPLACE,
it made sense for the organization to partner exclusively with the former.
Another issue that was reported from multiple sources is that offering halfprice discounts is training patrons to always wait for a discount to be available
before purchasing. Adams of Bristol Riverside explained that patrons are calling
the box office asking for Funsavers discounts before the weekly offers have gone
out to the public. Baldwin of Wheelock agreed that he has noticed patrons waiting
for a discount as well. Roth explains that the discounts have to work for the
theatre company as the ultimate goal is encouraging those patrons to come back.
Some theatre companies have accepted the fact that their half-price patrons are
going to stay half-price patrons. However, if that is not the company’s goal when
offering discounted tickets, they may need to re-evaluate the implementation and
the frequency of their discounts.
33
CONCLUSION
Throughout this analysis, varied ideas around the topic of discounting
tickets by performing arts organizations have been discussed. Of the theatre
companies interviewed, many experienced very positive results with their
discounting endeavors while others had more negative aspects to share. The most
consistent pattern recognized by the theatre companies that seemed more satisfied
with their outcome was that they made very specific choices with their
discounting implementation and have maintained the same choices. Both
Huntington Theatre Company and Wheelock offer half-price tickets to every
single performance. They may add or pull back their inventory based on
availability but they always offer half-price tickets and both reported very positive
feedback regarding their results and their experience working with ArtsBoston.
ART and Walnut Street Theatre have their own internal discounting
programs and only use the cultural alliance program when it is truly necessary.
Both companies gave examples of only offering half-price discounts for a
performance on a holiday or at an unpopular show time when the ultimate goal
was to fill seats. Roth explains that discounts make sense when they are
appropriate and necessary. They offer a means of balancing price and value. ART
and Walnut Street perfectly represent this idea in that they only offer half-price
discounts when it is absolutely necessary. The bonus is that they offer the
34
discounts so infrequently that their patrons do not become accustomed to only
purchasing tickets at a discount like other organizations reported. Roth explained
that 50% discounts can be dangerous in that they have become “too magic a
number” and that it becomes “crack” that patrons cannot avoid.
Going forward, all performing arts organizations that intend to offer
discounted tickets must establish some form of structure or guidelines before
starting and plan on sticking to it. This is not to say that organizations cannot
change their plan; Arena Stage’s story of re-evaluating their relationship with
TICKETPLACE is a perfect example of why it is necessary to change a
discounting strategy. However, the most successful discounting programs
throughout this analysis have a set list of guidelines to determine how and when
they are going to offer discounted tickets. Again, to re-cite Roth, discounts have
to work for the theatre company, not the patron. If an organization offers halfprice tickets when a show is simply not selling well, the patrons will begin to take
advantage of the discounting process as noted in the analysis.
An efficient way of evaluating the success of a discounting strategy is to
track a patron’s buying behavior. As noted in this analysis, most organizations are
not tracking this information. Though not all organization are able to obtain their
half-price buyers contact information from the cultural alliances, some are still
finding ways to collect their audience’s information and inputting it into their
ticketing database. Many ticketing databases have the ability to label patrons with
35
various codes that inform the organization of their buying history. If a “half-price
buyer” label is given to all of these patrons, it’s easy to run reports to see who is
falling under this category. Investing time into this endeavor will not only enable
organizations to evaluate their discounting strategies, but may also divulge
information about their marketing and development strategies. Tracking this
information is essentially a win-win for any organization that does it.
Offering discounted tickets can provide performing arts organizations with
an outlet to accomplish numerous goals. It allows them to reach new audiences,
generate revenue that may not have generated through full-price sales, and learn
about the buying behaviors of their patrons. As some organizations reported, it
also allows them to maintain their mission of affordability. If organizations offer
discounts at random and too frequently without set standards, this could result in
erratic buying behaviors that may not generate revenue. Patrons may also learn to
wait for discounts when they are able to pay the full single ticket price. However,
if discounts are strategically implemented through a previously defined structure,
organizations can manage the outcome of their discounting goals more
effectively.
36
APPENDIX A
All information was gathered through interviews conducted with employees at
each cultural alliance and theatre company.
The contacts for the cultural alliances include:
1. Steven Cuppo, Manager of TICKETPLACE
2. Jennifer Falk, Director of Marketing and Communications for ArtsBoston
3. Sarah Gafgen, Funsavers Coordinator at the GPCA.
Washington, D.C. theatre company contacts include:
1. Annie Immediata, Assistant Box Office Manager at the Folger Theatre
2. Jeffry Klein, Keegan Theatre
3. Chad Bauman, Associate Executive Director for Arena Stage
Boston theatre company contacts include:
1. Jared Fine, Marketing and Communications Manager at American Repertory
Theater (ART)
2. Charles Baldwin, Director of Marketing and Operations at Wheelock Theatre
Company
3. Meredith Mastroianni, Marketing Manager, and Temple Gill, Director of
Marketing at Huntington Theatre Company
37
Philadelphia theatre company contacts include:
1. Noah Herman of Flashpoint Theatre Company
2. Rayna Adams, Audience Development Coordinator for Bristol Riverside
Theatre
3. Ralph Weeks, Director of Marketing and Public Relations at the Walnut Street
Theatre.
An interview was also conducted with Steven Roth, President of The Pricing
Institute for supplemental information about strategic discounting.
38
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